#I think it's cool to be able use the same words for the same concept and make them accessible to all

[ckret2]

The biggest argument for the "Jack was never meant to go back to the past in the show's original conception" theory I can see is Amon-Ra answering Jack's call for help against Minions of Set, but demonstratingly ignoring his request to help him go to the past (if Gods are stronger than Aku, they should be able to undo his time spell, right?)

Then again, the Guardian episode almost directly states that Jack is meant to go back to the past, only after growing older and wiser.

I'm of the headcanon that Amon-Ra didn't help Jack return to the past for the same reason that the three gods just gave the emperor a sword rather than kill Aku themselves: they consider Aku to be a problem too small for the gods to get involved in, he's the mortals' business. Set and his minions are Amon-Ra's problem, if Jack asks for anything else he's peacing out.

On the doylist level, the reason he didn't help Jack is because the show writers wanted a cool ancient Egypt-themed episode (so Amon-Ra showed up) but they didn't want to end the show and send Jack home yet (so he didn't help Jack with that). ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I think the stronger evidence that Jack was always meant to return to the past happens on the meta level:

The show NEVER presents a potential win condition for Jack outside of returning to the past. It NEVER asks him to consider "what if you give up on returning to the past and simply kill Aku in the future?"

Any time Jack does try to kill Aku in the future, it's never presented instead of returning to the past; it's just something he's doing while he's here and killing him is conveniently available, and he'll presumably still return to the past later. We don't see him hunting Aku except when he stumbles on a lucky opportunity to track him down (the Gangsters, the moth prince & princess); otherwise all his time is spent looking for a time portal, not Aku.

Seriously. The show never gives us a win option outside of time travel. The FANS think of alternative win options that involve staying in the future, but you've gotta separate what the fans imagine from what the show itself actually tells us.

A couple times he chooses "save the people right here in front of you rather than use this route home," but every time this happens, it's framed as "Jack is such a good person, he's willing to temporarily FAIL and set back his quest for other people"—the show never frames any situation that involves "choosing not to return to the past" as a win.

The one time in the show when he had THE STRONGEST POSSIBLE motive to stay in the future—he'd just fallen in love with Ashi—as soon as he gets his sword back, what does he try to do next? Hunt Aku down and kill him? No: find the Guardian and his time portal. Even at the moment Jack is offered the greatest temptation to stay in the future—the show flat out ignores it. "Not returning to the past" is NEVER, EVER, EVER presented as a potential win condition.

The theme song is the words "I'll be back, back to the past, Samurai Jack" over and over. Not "I'll stop Aku" or something. Aku isn't important enough to mention in the theme song. Time travel is.

This show was never gonna end any other way because the show itself never gave any other option.

[alasse-irena]

The thing you are talking about (that the words we have limit our thinking) is called linguistic determinism. Strong linguistic determinism suggests that we aren't capable of conceptualising things we don't have a word for. It's largely been discredited in this strong form over the past century, and what remains is that the language we use might guide us to frame our thoughts in certain ways, but it doesn't limit our thought.

For example, Whorf (sorry I can't remember his first name), an advocate of this theory, suggested that speakers of a language without verb tenses relating to time must be unable to think about the passage of time in the same way that we do. That's simply not the case! Speakers of languages without time tenses simply make use of other concepts like yesterday and tomorrow, after and before, finished and unfinished to make the distinctions we make with verb tenses.

Similarly, although as English speakers we have but one word for snow, instead of the three that Inuit have, we can still distinguish between different textures of snow by calling it powdery or slushy or hard-packed or something (I've never seen snow don't @ me if these are weird ways to describe it). It's not as important to our daily lives, but when it comes up we can perceive it and talk about it.

Every time you see one of those lists of "untranslatable" words, the list is proving itself wrong on the spot. "木漏れ日 (komorebi): a Japanese word that refers to the sunlight that filters through the leaves of trees." Guess what, that's translated! We don't have one word for it, but we can still say "sunlight filtered through leaves".

The study you referred to (here) about Russian words for blue, does not indicate that Russian speakers were able to distinguish between more shades of blue. It indicates that, given three blue squares to look at, Russian speakers were slightly faster than English speakers at matching two squares of the same shade when that shade was described by a different Russian word than the third square. There are plenty of languages that don't have separate words for blue and green at all, and their speakers are still aware that the bleen of the sky and the bleen of the leaves are different.

To take this back around to the tiktok users' self censorship, two things. When your friend who is a primary school teacher says "fudge" even around adults, it's not because they don't understand the distinction between "fudge" and "fuck", or that they're becoming incapable of fully expressing how annoyed they are about dropping their drink. It's just a habit they've got from standing in front of a classroom. Similarly - the people on tiktok still know the words "die" and "killed" and "euthanasia", they're just not using them here. Those words are not disappearing, any more than saying "happy holidays" to your friend who doesn't celebrate Christmas means that Christmas is going to disappear.

And secondly, even if we *did* speak a language that had only one word for the act of dying, we would still all be able to distinguish differences in nuance by saying "she unalived peacefully", "the cops violently forced him to unalive", "his doctor assisted him to unalive".

Newspeak isn't real. It's a cool dystopian idea that George Orwell thought of inspired by combining language censorship under real authoritarian governments with the idea of strong linguistic determinism. Saying "unalive" on tiktok is no different to how in American schools I hear you will get scolded for saying "what the hell" - very silly, but hardly the collapse of civilisation.

Also they literally said "killed" in the caption.

Can’t even say common saying taught in first grade to children anymore. Newspeak levels of bullshit.

‘Unalived’ is 100% a newspeak term. Reduce the vocabulary and you reduce the nuances people are able to think in. If you ever were in a psychology class, there’s a study that comes up about which people were able to make a subtle distinction between different shades of blue. They found Russian speakers could see more of a difference than English speakers as they had more words for different shades of blue, whereas even different shades in English were often suffixed with the word ‘blue’: ‘navy blue’, ‘light blue’, ‘sky blue’. They concluded that your language plays a role in what you are able to think about, simply because words are our ways of understanding, explaining and vocalising our world.

It’s easy to see then that if you can no longer see a distinction between death and murder, being killed or dying, because they are all simply being ‘unalive’ then we are so fucked. Does it matter if you die in your sleep surrounded by loved ones or were you gunned down by a cop? Unalived. Does it matter if you died in pain without your meds or took assisted death? Unalived. Can you differentiate intensity or are people simply doubleplusunalived? Waits to be seen.

[bitebitekxll]

Physical Catalyst

Notes: Years ago I read an isekai fic that referred to guns as ‘physical catalysts’ which is where I got the name from (haven’t been able to find it but I’ll link it if I do) but the rest are just my own musings about a reader with a gun in Teyvat. Also first attempt at making a divider, but I think it’s kinda cool

So whether it’s SAGAU or regular isekai, imagine reader is in Teyvat, no one knows they’re not from Teyvat, and they have a gun.

This in and of itself isn’t a big deal, most people carry weapons in this world and tons of them have guns. But the thing is, they’re not the same as real world guns, are they?

Feel free to correct me if I’m wrong, but every case of guns we’ve seen in genshin (pyro fatui skirmishers, Chevreuse) shoot out what looks like elemental energy. Maybe they’re bullets infused with elemental energy, like what we see with the arrows for the bow users, except the bow users can still shoot regular arrows. We never see the guns shoot regular/non elemental bullets.

Which is why my theory (that might be pulled apart in a future update but for now…) is that they don’t exist. Teyvat guns are capable of shooting elemental energy, maybe fuelled by the wielder’s vision/delusion or maybe using some kind of pellets, but they are not equipped to shoot with the force needed to make a regular bullet be of any use.

So when reader shows up and has a gun from their world? Oh boy. A handgun is no weapon of mass destruction, but anything that can take down a lawachurl in one well-aimed headshot will terrify Teyvat’s inhabitants. I mean, their guns do damage too, sure, but it’s a relative amount. A burn from a shot of pyro, a shock from a shot of electro. The concept of a gun that can instantly kill someone, quicker and easier than an arrow? Using a tiny piece of metal that isn’t even sharp and doesn’t explode? You are going to throw entire nations into chaos.

If word gets out about it, you’re gonna have law enforcement from across all the continent investigating you, not to mention the fatui— be prepared for the harbingers to be hunting down your ass trying to get their hands on such a powerful weapon

Of course that’s only if you let the cat out of the bag. Use your weapon away from prying eyes, and you’ll probably be fine. Dead hiluchurls tell no tales, after all. Or men, if you’re more chill with murder.

It probably wouldn’t be too hard to find a metalsmith who could take one of your bullets and make more. Though I wonder what explanation you’d give as to what it is, without giving away the ‘deadliest handheld weapon in history’ thing.

Idk I just think the introduction of bullet-operated guns in Teyvat is interesting, might write some stuff for the different characters reactions to it at some point

[crow-caller]

rewatching your nightbane review and getting genuinely mad about how much the concept of a magically-bound divine right of kings (and how the populace can’t overthrow their rulers without all dying) fucking rules and how alex aster WASTED it. begging another fantasy author to please write this idea but like. good

(also your proclamation in that video that grim has “ice-cold yaoi hands” has haunted me since it came out. why did you speak that into the world social media user crow caller. why)

1. was there when the yaoi hands reigned. I know the signs and know them well. never call me a social media user ever again.

2. The divine right of kings thing Aster backward stumbles into IS very cool conceptually, you're right!! I nearly brought this up in my Skyshade review, but then realized it'd be the weirdest pull: Fallen London has an extremely good version of the same concept. I'm so so so sorry FL for referring to you as anything similar to Lightlark, but if you're interested in how 'magically bound divine right of kings which keeps a populace under control, treated as innate to the world but secretly artificial' can be done well.... well. let me tell you about The Chain.

The Great Chain of Being is a concept that the world is divided into a strict hierarchy, with some above others. In FL, the beings at the top are Judgements- cosmic gods who burn as bright as suns (okay, they are suns). They sit at the top of The Chain with the understanding This Is The Way The World is- they are often referred to as 'Kings', because they are analogous to them in many ways. Why do the Kings rule over us? Because the Chain is a facet of the universe, the Chain is true and says they are better than us. Why does the Chain say this? Because it is true.

.......Except, of course, it isn't. The Judgements created the chain, as kings created the Divine Right of Kings- to excuse their excess of power and abuse of it, they create the lie there is a divine truth to the world which just so happens to put them at the top. The universe doesn't make some people better than others, but some people will say it does in order to get away with heinous acts*. In FL, the Judgements abuse their power in far wilder cosmic horrors ways, able to enforce this division with their ability to rewrite reality with burning words. This power is again not necessarily something innate to them because they are sooo special- it is something they have because The Chain they've created to control reality says so.

This is key worldbuilding to fallen london, and is Sick As Hell- though quite Deep Lore, not apparent or relevant when you first begin playing.

(*The Great Chain is a real concept originating from medieval Christianity, which very much places all the world into a strict hierarchy with God at the top- followed by man, descending through various animals, and even including plants and minerals. A key aspect of the Chain was that this 'Absolute Hierarchy' was real, innate, holy, and... of course, an excuse for all kinds of racism. Sure, maybe they did think it mattered to decide lichen was closer to god than mushrooms, but ultimately an obvious reason the philosophy took root was to justify why certain humans mattered more than others.)

[vinelark]

Gosh thank you SO much for writing bbts it is such an impressive story you should be so proud!! I absolutely love how you're able to balance crazy fun shenanigans with heartwrenching character moments. I could talk about it forever and ever (and i will) but for now I'm wondering, I think you mentioned a while back having some more of the final chapter from written from kon's perspective. Would you ever be willing to share some of those scenes? Kon connecting everything he knows about Robin to everything he's learning about tim must be mindblowing yet finally make so much sense to him

thank you so much! my goal will always be to make shenanigans shenaniganier and heartwenching moments heartwrenching...ier...by contrast with each other, and i'm really glad to hear that balance worked for you.

and yes i do have some extra kon pov snippets to share! below are some bits from the latter half of the chapter; these are parts that were more thoroughly drafted before the pov revision, and also sections i liked/felt were distinct enough to share.

outside the hotel, reuniting from kon's pov:

“We broke up, that’s what happened.”

It’s Tim; of course it’s Tim, making his way down the stairs toward Kon and somehow moving gracefully even with a crutch tucked under his arm. He’s in a suit—a different one than he wore at the zoo, this one a velvety black with a subtle shimmer around the lapels, some sort of fine embroidery. His hair is sleek and styled, cutting a smoother silhouette against the entrance lights than Kon has seen from Tim or from Robin.

Kon’s mouth goes, impossibly, even drier.

“And even that is an exaggeration; it’s not like we were going steady, this isn’t the 1950s,” Tim continues, cool gaze locked on the reporter. “We had a bit of fun, broke it off, hardly an earth-shattering concept. Honestly, Vicki, I’d expect this gossip-hungry lack of tact from the Weekly, not from someone who claims to be a serious journalist.”

There’s a small, indignant Hey! from one of the nearby reporters. The one from the Gazette—Vicki—gives Tim a tiny, razor-sharp smile. “Superheroes aren’t gossip, Mr. Drake, they’re public safety concerns. Especially when they tangle with us mere mortals—as I’m sure you know.”

Tim responds with a sharp smile of his own. He must be wearing makeup—the cut on his forehead is barely visible.

He still hasn’t looked at Kon.

inside the hotel; realizations are had

“Oh.” Tim winces, then draws himself up. He looks so uncomfortable—in a way Kon can only see because he knows what Tim looks like when he’s relaxed and happy—that Kon almost abandons the whole thing. But he needs to hear this. And he thinks Tim needs to say it. “Okay. Of course. But, um, this time if I could maybe…I mean, I had a whole speech planned. It was supposed to be at the Tower, with cue cards, and—I understand if you don’t want to hear it right now. And I’ll respect that. But before we get into it I want you to know the gist, at least, which is that—” Tim pauses for the barest moment. When he speaks again his words are clinical, precise. “I trust you. I showed it poorly, but that was never in question. I was trying to balance protecting my—the others, their names, and the collective agreement I have with them, but also I know you can be trusted and it was never a reflection of that. And I understand that intent and outcome are different, but just so you know I’m planning to tell Bart and Cassie too, and I’m going to do everything I can to make sure something like this doesn’t happen again, so—”

Kon is listening—he’s listening harder than he’s listened to almost anything recently, enhanced hearing or not. But he’s also looking. And he sees the determined set of Tim’s shoulders, the carefully natural expression that only wavers at the edges, and only because Kon is watching for it. He sees it clear as daylight: This is Robin talking now. It’s not the same dual glimpse he got before, back in that basement lab—Tim was disheveled then, so clearly in mission mode, and he was everything all at once. But now, even under this polished Tim Drake exterior, Tim is trying to slip into Robin mode.

It’s not the full effect, though. If they were having this conversation at the Tower, Kon thinks, it would feel different. It would fully feel like a mission debrief, a Superboy & Robin operational update. It would be so easy to make everything about the logistics, the fallout, the team, and not about them.

Here, though, Kon can see Tim’s eyes.

He thinks about the folded invitation in his hand. About Bruce Wayne’s insistence that Kon meet Tim here, the subtle way Mr. Wayne didn’t exactly lie but certainly implied this was part of Tim’s plan so Kon would go along with it, and Kon takes a moment to appreciate that Robin definitely learned his conniving skills from Batman. This was totally a setup, but not for Kon.

And because they’re here, and not in the Tower or the field or talking over the phone or playing whisper down the alley with a bunch of vigilantes, and because Kon knows Robin, Kon can hear what Tim is actually saying. Which is—

“Wait.” It takes Kon a moment to understand that was him interrupting Tim; Tim gets there faster, snapping his mouth shut. “Wait, wait.” Kon is still arriving at a conclusion, which is:

“You’re not upset with me,” Kon realizes.

“What?” Tim looks thrown. “No? Of course not? No. I’m the one who lied about my identity, you’re the one who should be—”

It clicks all at once.

“Oh,” Kon says. “You’re not upset with me, and I’m—oh my god, Rob, I’m not mad that you didn’t tell me. I’m mad that you almost died.”

on the roof, talking 2.0

“So,” Tim says, tipping his head back. His gaze stays firmly skyward, snowflakes swirling between them. “You were in love. With Robin.”

Kon braces himself. He hasn’t come this far—said what he’s said, and felt what he’s felt—to take the easy way out now. And whatever the fallout is, he’s more sure than ever that they can handle it. “Am,” Kon says. “I am in love. With Robin.”

He expects Tim to have some sort of reaction to this either way—discomfort, possibly, if he isn’t into Kon anymore, or maybe happiness if Kon’s lucky and reading this the right way.

Instead, Tim’s expression barely flickers. He swallows. “Kon,” he says. “I can’t be Robin all the time.”

“I…know?” Kon says. He gestures at Tim. “You’re not wearing the mask right now, obviously.”

“No, I mean.” Tim draws his unbroken knee to his chest and wraps an arm around it. Kon can see the shape of him, can see details if he focuses, can feel the exact balance of Tim’s body on his TTK cushion. Most of all, he can hear how fast Tim’s heart is beating, even as Tim holds himself so very steady. “I can’t always be…that is, sometimes I’m just. Tim.”

bonus: near the end

“It’s just a prototype,” Tim adds in a rush. “That’s why it’s all shiny. I’ll make more subtle ones for the active set, but—”

“No, it’s.” Kon swallows. He can’t find words to explain the relief ballooning in his chest, but he has a feeling he doesn’t have to. He thinks Tim already knows. “It’s great. Tim.”

[campbyler]

hii! this is something you kind of touched on in the last question answer but i thought i’d ask anyway. so i’m working on a story but i feel like it is mostly just dialogue. like 70% of it is conversation. that’s just what feels most natural to me to write. i’m not sure if it’s really a problem because i feel like that’s what the story needs. but i feel like i would like there to be more just narration paragraphs. you guys have said that there’s a a lot of conversation in acswy but to me you still have plenty of narration in there so it’s not just dialogue. i’m just wondering if you have any advice for me

hello!!! like you said, suni touched on this a bit with her last response, but the best piece of advice i have received re: dialogue is Do The Dishes. as in, make one of the characters doing a chore or doing something so that you can interject narration with that. there’s also a lot of opportunity to add in facial expressions and body language — if a character is anxious, having them fidgeting, or if someone is upset and trying to hide it, putting in a line about how they’re smiling but their eyes are bright (this is a common phrase to indicate tears). so it could read something like:

“I don’t know,” Mike says with forced nonchalance, reaching for the sponge sitting next to the faucet, “I just think it would be really cool to go to a concert where the only song they sang, over and over, was Baby by Justin Bieber.”

Will makes a face. “What?”

“Come on,” Mike reasons, shrugging his right shoulder. “It’d be unique. New. Never-been-done-before.”

“Well, yes,” Will says slowly, like Mike sounds insane. Maybe he does. “I agree with all of those things,” he continues, twirling the pencil he’s holding between his fingers. “I just don’t think cool would be a word I’d use. Funny, maybe — but not cool.”

Mike scoffs. “Doing something no one else has ever done before is super cool,” he says. The plate he’s scrubbing at is clean, ready to rinse, but he continues running the sponge over it anyway, a little overzealous. It’s fine. He’s just really committed to clean dishes, is all.

“No one has ever kicked you in the teeth, but that doesn’t mean it would be super cool if it happened to you right now—“

He’s cut off by his own laugh as Mike flicks dishwater at him. “Shut up,” he says, shaking more water off his hand in Will’s direction. Will continues to laugh, pulling his sketchbook to his chest to keep it from getting caught in the crossfire—crosswater—crosswhatever.

“I won’t kiss you if you have no teeth,” Will declares, apparently in the business of picking and choosing which of Mike’s comments he’ll listen to. He’s clearly holding back a laugh, his eyes lit with poorly concealed amusement.

“I won’t kiss you if you kick me in the teeth,” Mike bites back. Which he can do happily, since he has teeth, and will continue to have teeth long after today.

obviously this is super silly but hopefully that got the message across as to how you might be able to creatively add some dialogue! and of course i did make mike Actually Do The Dishes but you can really make them do any chore or action and the concept is the same :) hopefully this was helpful at all!!

[moonschocolate]

Headcanons about my current hyperfixation: THEOO!!☆

I keep stalking the 'theodore nott headcanons' tag so I might as well write my own headcanons about him

✮ ⋆ ˚���𖦹 ⋆｡°✩

this man has social anxiety. prove me wrong.

when he was younger he found comfort in reading fiction books, like pjo

he 100% had an obsession with greek mythology, or mythology in general, and it's still kinda there but not like before

then growing up he got into classics

like one day he was like 'what if I read a Dostoevskij book' and that's where it all started

he prefers reading this kind of books because they teach you more

tallest boy you've ever seen, somewhat taller (only by few centimeteres) than Fred and George

he plays the cello, like kind of, he knows how to play a piece only studying it, i believe this man was never able to play a piece at first sight

surprisingly (to him) he really has a lot of things in common with Luna, when he found out he wanted to spend more time with her

he's really silent, but GOD does he ever stop thinking?? his head is loud af

enjoys being with his friends, they're used to him not shouting in their ears (unlike some other boy *cough cough* Mattheo *cough cough ... cough*)and he enjoys their company and they do too

not the type of boy to run to Spotify or whatever music app whenever he can, but he enjoys some kind of music (mostly smooth piano jazz, dramatic classical music since it's my fav, and he thinks TV girl, Lamp, Ichiko Aoba are cool)

never replies quickly, he's always late replying cuz thinks being on his phone is a complete waste of time, but it's not like he's NEVER on it

chill with Halloween but feral over Christmas (does not show it)

legos. I've said all.

YOU CANNOT TELL ME THIS MAN DOESNT HAVE HIS ROOM FULL OF STAR WARS SETS

despite enjoying english and all that kind of subjects, he is feral, and when I say feral I mean feral over maths. He loves learing new concepts because then it all makes sense and it's just so cool (explained from a person who is also feral over maths, pls tell me you get what i mean)

hyperfixations? oh so many

again, greek mythology

you could tell this man "Hey do you know about the myth of Apolloand Daphne" his eyes would light up and he would tell you the myth, his opinion, and related myths ("there's also this other myht with Apollo where he-")

A S T R O L O G Y

still greek mythology related but

he could stay hours talking about constellations

"hey do you know the myth behind the gemini constellation? No? Can I tell you about it?! Okay so-"

paper stars.

if there's a paper stripe around he'd grab it and make a paper star out of it

looks like the typa guy who'd take a lot of pictures with a canon/sony camera

when he feels anxious he'd do this thing where (get ready for the worst explanation ever) he'd put one of his nails of the right hand in between the skin and the nail of his thumb on his left hand and make the nail go left and right, still in between the skin and the nail (I ALWAYS DO THAT I HOPE IT MAKES SENSE I TRIED TO BE AS SPECIFIC AS I COULD)

He tried to go to a party since Blaise, Draco, Enzo, Theo, Pansy (basically everyone you get it)... begged him to come along

we could sum up his experience in one word

NIGHTMARE

The music was too loud, the people were to close to him, everyone was shouting, there were alcohol and drugs (he still wonders how they got literal drugs into the castle), everyone tried to dance with him and talk to him, that time he got overwhelmed tried to leave, but they were all like 'heyyyy nooo dont leaveeeee stay hereeeeee' but his friends understood it wasn't for him and Blaise went with him to his dorm, waited until he felt better then went back to the party

has never been to a party since then

smart af

like he easily surpasses draco and mione

also theo and mione are really close friends, one time they found eachother in the library reading the same book and chatting they found out they have several things in common

has a collection of stylographs, that stays in his library neatly ordinated

best sense of style (he obv got it from Blaise but he made it better)

he loves movies, he's watched movies like Dead Poets Society, Dorian Gray, but also movies about historical facts like The Darkest Hour, The King's Speech, Hidden Figures, The Pianist (I'm a sucker for this kind of movies honestly)

!! HE HAS DIMPLES !!

He loves professor Lupin, he thinks of him as Keating is dps

secretly listens to Micheal Bublè in Christmas, he loves his Christmas songs

he only buys old books, never new ones, he thinks that already used books, from decades ago, he thinks they hold stories, and it's even better when the books have annotations, maybe he'll erase them, but it's good to hear other's opinions

has a lot of vynils

used to study for his dad, now this became a habit, that's why he's the best in class

his relationship with his mom is not strong, MORE

When his mom died he was 5 so he didn't understand

when he finally knew the truth he cried for weeks, then he would occasionally go out to look at the stars, which he always admired with his mom, and cried thinking about her, thinking that she was watching him from up there

when he was like 10 he didn't cry no more, only if he ever opened up

he shared anything with her

he NEVER let ANYONE call him Teddy, he always though that is what his mom called him, and he didn't want other people to 'interfere' with that, he feels like it's their thing

despises horror movies. gets scared to death watching them, and doesnt find the lore interesting

never walks around with only socks on, has the fear of walking on water accidentally and getting his feet wet and the feeling disgustes him

also, has the whole collection of pjo books (every book. from percy jackson and the olympians to the chalice of the gods)

loves cats so much, he has two cats, but he wishes he had more

he has male brown cat named Monet and a grey cat with some beige spots and green eyes (it's mt bsf's cat, I love her - the cat - and I thought she could be a honourable mention) named Vivienne

defo has an obsession with sharks, but is even more obsessed with jellyfish, he knows a lot of scientific names for their species, for exmample Phylloriza Punctata, or Chrisaora Quinquecirrha, or Aurelia Aurelita, he's obsessed

Fav subject isn't potions, it's astronomy instead

since i live for loser!Theo, im in love with the idea of him stuttering in front of a guy/girl he finds cute or attractive, blushing and being awkward

my man absolutely doesn't know how to talk, he speaks too fast, and when ppl tell him to slow down, then he thinks he's talking too slow

if anyone fatshames any of his friends, or is racist/homophobic towards them, or just insults them, he will try to avoid throwing punches, but lets say he'll exchange a word or two with that person

if he's itchy, he scratches so hard there could be blood (a bit exaggerated but you get it)

could've been a Ravenclaw, but if he did his father would be really mad at him, so he's happy he isn't

another headcanon that I kindly stole rn from @heirofs1ytherin is that he's into poetry. LIKE 100% ✮ ⋆ ˚｡𖦹 ⋆｡°✩ You probably got that I love him HES MY BABY

[milkiie]

𝐴𝑁 𝐴𝐶𝑇𝑈𝐴𝐿𝐿𝑌 𝐻𝐸𝐿𝑃𝐹𝑈𝐿 𝐿𝑂𝐴 𝐺𝑈𝐼𝐷𝐸

everyone wants to talk about how the law is effortless, manifestation is effortless, but it seems to me nobody wants to talk about the effort one has to put in before being able to effortlessly apply it. manifesting is tied to general well-being, mindset and energy, and it is not the same for everybody. i've seen one too many people getting asks from others with genuine questions and giving them no guidance, no compassion, just buzz words, mantras and snark; so, here: an actually helpful guide to loa and manifestation, where i actually tell you things

─── ִֶָ ๑˙ 🎀 ̟ !! step 1 : self concept

self concept is the way you perceive and treat yourself.

here is a video explaining it in depth:

now that we know what it is and what makes a good, high self concept, here are some specific ideas on how to boost it:

first, it is important to develop a sense of self and identity. get to know yourself, find out who you are and what you really want, what fulfills you. i like to use journaling for this

here are some prompts for you to use:

and some subliminals, if you'd like to use them:

1. 432Hz frequency + self-concept by iwiigi: 🌸

2. mindset + self-concept by moza morph: 🍨

3. self concept by Alice's Enchanted Cottage: 💕

➙ you do not have to use subliminals, but i personally love to

some other ways to boost your self concept:

᯽ practice self care. physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually

᯽ discipline your thoughts. don't let your inner bully run their mouth

᯽ validate yourself, praise yourself, celebrate yourself

᯽ work on healing your inner child

᯽ do things that make you feel confident - wear your makeup, hair and clothes how you like it, dance sexily in your room, pretend to be a celebrity, whatever it takes to feel like you are it

᯽ spend quality time with yourself, doing things that make you happy

᯽ do nice things for others. simple things like smiling at people, or complimenting someone do wonders both for them, and yourself

REMEMBER: you don't need to do any of this, these are just ideas; do what feels right for you

─── ִֶָ ๑˙ 🎀 ̟ !! step 2 : align with receiving

this is what hinders most people in receiving their manifestations, and it is not your fault. it can be hard to receive effortlessly, especially if you are used to only giving, or having to work hard to receive. that is what the world has taught you.

work on becoming comfortable with receiving without endeavor, and on not feeling indebted or inadequate. this is why self concept is important. you will not receive what you do not feel worthy of. you will not receive if you don't feel comfortable accepting.

to become more comfortable with receiving, all you have to do is treat yourself! not just materially, but spiritually and emotionally. lavish yourself with care, compliments, little treats, rest, partaking in things that bring you enjoyment, etc. keep reminding yourself you deserve only the best, both by affirming, and actually giving yourself the good things. even if you feel you haven't been "productive", choose to spoil yourself. choose to live deliciously.

─── ִֶָ ๑˙ 🎀 ̟ !! step 3 : really embrace the simplicity

please, stop reading posts that use huge, abstract words and tell you to "just do" something. stop engaging with blogs that put people down or refuse to explain. they are bringing down your vibration, and they are complicating the law beyond all recognition. just do what feels right

you wanna use methods? use them!

feel drawn to practicing spells? go ahead!

subliminals look cool to you? wonderful!

you feel right just deciding and carrying on? hell yeah!

whatever you do to manifest your desires, be it affirming, making a vision board, scripting, SATS, or whatever else, as long as it feels good, it will work.

follow your happiness and your intuition. trust yourself. stop seeking validation from the outside, just do what you think is best

─── ִֶָ ๑˙ 🎀 ̟ !! step 4 : coping with perceived lack

now, we all know you aren't actually lacking. if you have decided to manifest something, it is yours. but what if you don't see it in your perceived reality? you don't have to ignore the illusion of lack. in fact, i would say it is self-limiting to attempt that

instead, make peace with waiting

understand that the moment you decide something is yours, movement starts, even if not visible to you in your surroundings yet. the moment you decide, you begin to align with your desire, and the universe starts to work on getting it to you. it is like online shopping. placing your order is instant, but it takes a little bit of time for it to actually get into your hands. and just like with a package, while you wait for your manifestation to get to you, you don't need to stress about it. just do what feels good and live your best life, do what makes you happy. you don't need to pretend you already have it. you just need to live in the knowing that you will. persist in the knowing.

[tawked]

tbh every time I see able-bodied people complain about this moment from Frank Miller's 2000s Batman run

it feels kinda like they don't completely grasp why it's a problem for Batman specifically. They seem to understand it in the same abstract as Batman saying the N word or something, which obviously he should not do and if he did it'd produce a similar problem, but that's not quite it.

Batman as a superhero is deeply associated with the theme of mental illness, institutionalization, rehabilitation and in-community care. Everybody knows about Arkham Asylum. Everybody knows that all of his villains are mentally ill in some way. Most cool people understand that Batman is also mentally ill and that the comics have embraced this as text for decades.

Even cooler people know that back in the 1940s, Batman would kill a new disabled person every month and usually have some moralizing speech prepared about how he's "better off this way." Like, one of his first villains was a dude with Fred Flintstone style brain damage, but the brain damage made him eeevil - so when he dies, they mourn the good person that he was, while accepting as necessary the death of the person he became.

These characters would have different backstories, like being a cave man defrosted from an iceberg (yes), a "white savage found in Africa" (yeah), or able-bodied people getting Hugo Strange'd -- but if you look at fiction and fearmongering propaganda about intellectually disabled and mentally ill people from the era, in the context of Aktion T4 happening just a year earlier and the related propaganda still flooding American culture and medicine, well...

Since then, we've had the fairly recent idea of Batman as a protector of the mentally ill, in a sense.

One of my favourite pieces of Batman media is the two-parter "Lock-Up," from Batman: The Animated Series, which explores abuse at Arkham and doesn't play the inmates necessarily as dangerous, it accepts at outset that they deserve humane treatment and care.

This version of Batman is supposed to lead with compassion. You know, within the ultra-violent, "but violence in comics is not like violence in real life" genre language of superheroes, I mean. Yeah Scarecrow might try to murder Batman with exploding pumpkins and Batman might roundhouse kick him unconscious but that's not like a real person planting bombs or kicking dudes.

Anyway -- this compassionate Batman is the version of Batman people know and like.

This is the version that came closest to the mainstreaming of Batman that the 1966 TV series achieved. From 2006 onward, with O'Neil finally fucking off, this became the version of Batman the comics have accepted as core ever since. When people think of Batman, he's supposed to be able to empathize and see himself in his villains, he's supposed to care that they receive humane treatment and he's supposed to believe in their possible reintegration into society.

Batman is the superhero who cares about disabled people.

( this is from Batman: Earth One, an attempt to modernize the character based on these concepts. )

So if the "I care about the disabled" mental illness guy is suddenly calling people "retard" it kind of reverts him all the way back to this unsympathetic policeman or rubber room orderly that was the norm before the 1980s, before writers embraced the idea of Bruce being able to see himself in other people who, due to illness, have been unable to find a place within society and resorted to extreme, identical measures - dressing up in silly costumes and running around in the night - to deal with it.

If Batman is just calling people retards and expressing a total lack of empathy for others around him, well, he's just one of the "men in white coats" who used to come to drag the mentally ill off to an asylum circa the 1960s (this still happens, it just has different aesthetics now).

It's like

top tenmost of the top ten words Batman should never fucking say because it undermines the popular concept of Batman lol.

[rainbowsillz]

Their voicelines about you.

FT. Riddle, Leona, Azul, Kalim, Vil, Idia and Malleus. + Rollo.

Synopsis: The boys sharing their comments regarding with you, some can be sarcastic, otherwise it's cool ♪

Warnings: None!! Wholesomeness overload <33

꒰ ꕤ ꒱ ─── Riddle Rosehearts

— About you?

“...A question to me? Are you asking to how I think about Yuu? My first impression of them? Well, they are hardly polite if I had to say, with them colliding against a housewarden that is. Yes, I am referring to when they tumbled on me during the beginning of this year. It was admittedly too much. They are a handful to manage. And keen, no doubt about it.”

꒰ ꕤ ꒱ ─── Leona Kingscholar

— About you?

“Oi, what's this? An interview about that herbivore? Did they pay money to you for this? Are they brave for me? I guess? Or moronic since normally no one would be able to handle overblots. It hurts my ego every time I wonder how I lose to them. If that lizard gets beat up like the rest of us, I will be grateful. I can't wait for that day— so I can sneer at him.”

꒰ ꕤ ꒱ ─── Azul Ashengrotto

— About you?

“About them? I fail to understand the point of this topic. They are incisive, hilarious and tactful. Outsmarting others was one thing but me? Me? As much as I dislike to speak this out, they are doing nicely being a prefect on our school grounds... Oh my? You don't believe in me? I am genuine. I haven't scar anyone, have I? You have my word at least.”

꒰ ꕤ ꒱ ─── Kalim AI-Asim

— About you?

“I have been wanting to tell you that! They are carefree, unique, a person you can rely on. Night Raven College wouldn't be the same without them. Please, tell them how much I care for their happiness. Yuu is an honest friend, and them being magicless doesn't change anything. We should look up to them even! Strive to be willing to confess we are flawed.”

꒰ ꕤ ꒱ ─── Vil Schoenheit

— About you?

“Curiosity? What was it that you stated? The supervisor for Ramshackle dormitory? They are skilled in encouragement, diligence, unluckily due to being appointed by the headmaster without proving if they deserve their status beforehand. Some people gossip about them. Ah, do not worry about it, I squashed any complaints they have to that already.”

꒰ ꕤ ꒱ ─── Idia Shroud

— About you?

“They are like the main characters of a shonen manga. C-could they be? Because the dorm leaders like them, some just wouldn't reveal they do. I have the data from Ortho to confirm my observations. I steer clear from them mostly though, they always are around with extroverts.. I prefer my room to them. Are we finished yet? I'm — leaving so bye...”

꒰ ꕤ ꒱ ─── Malleus Draconia

— About you?

“My treasure? An intriguing idea. They are fearless, doesn't mind my ramblings about gargoyles. I was invited by them, it made my heart filled with anticipation and I am rather fond of their remarks. If I am any more selfish I would wish to cage them up inside a tower so that I can preserve them forever. Alas, it's too cruel for them, isn't it? I suppose.”

꒰ ꕤ ꒱ ─── Rollo Flamme

— About you?

“Their decision was unsavory, why must it be Draconia? And what does he have that I do not? It plaques me how obstinate that clueless sheep is. Magic users are notorious, insidious, when will they learn? If only they agree to let me whisk them away from that concept. For I, Rollo Flamme, would not treat them as their Headmaster Crowley does.”

[grayskiesandink]

You know, i've always really liked Ink's concept of forgiveness/way to deal with conflicts and now with your jewish interpretation, i like it even more!

So, according to Ink's FAQ, Ink never tries to attack a enemy first and always tries to reconcile and understand where the problem is coming from, which includes him talking with the enemy in order to be able understand the issue and try to brush them in the right direction.

You may already now this but i realllyyy want to explain for anyone who doesn't, there's a concept in judaism called "teshuvah" (meaning "repentance" or "return"), it's a concept of forgiveness where the perpetratir undergoes a rigorous self-examination that requires engagement with the victim, by confessing, expressing regret and making an active effort to right thr wrong of what they commited.

I've always thought that his formula of dealing with fights to be very Teshuvah all around! In my opinion ofc

But anyways, i think the previous anon expressed their thoughts incorrectly because his need to "follow the script" is not a part of this headcanon at all. (it's actually a result of his abandonment issues, dissociative outlook on pretty much everything and always thinking what's best for the creators rather than what's better for him but i digress)

What i could however consider a part of this interpretation is his importance on life and the creations. It was said by comyet that Ink thinks all creations/life should exist because "it's fair", and that's actually one of the main reasons to why he decided to protect such creations in the first place! He loves them with all if his nonexistent heart and wants them to exist (this does imply that he protects AU's with bad endings but i'm trying to focus more on his want for living you know?)

yes !!! finally someone talks about Ink's fighting style...... It is so important to me that he's not this aggressor- in reality he'll do anything to not have to fight/aim to kill. He's a talker!! Fighting uses up his ink and that can always be dangerous (in how I write Ink- he does fight a bit more often but there's reasons for that. I still like to keep in mind his usual fighting style. and also my Ink is Not canon). It's really interesting to connect teshuvah with his fighting style... turning it around in my brain. honestly I always find thinking about forgiveness and how characters would deal with it super super interesting. I am always thinking about how Ink would deal with forgiveness. does he acknowledge his own mistakes... I think he'd more openly engage with his mistakes towards the Creators than he would for other people. is he haunted by his actions towards other characters. is he??? does he understand that's what he's feeling??? I NEED TO KNOW !! WAHGAG. Ink you're so cool and interesting I love youuuuu. I love thinking about Ink's worldview <3 I agree with everything you said about his attitude towards the scripts- I haven't seen it put into words often but there is something super intriguing about how at the same time he's both self sacrificial and selfish. I say selfish in the most non judgmental way to be clear, textbook definition of the word. How I see his desire to keep the scripts running is both out of deep respect for the creators and out of a desire to keep them happy so they keep creating (giving him access to the life force he needs). But, at the same time, this means everyone he cares about is put at risk (his dads!!!!!!). He's sacrificing his own personal attachments so he can focus on his own survival (at least, in part. I do think it's clear he just loves the creators). I do agree that his love for all creations is very Jewish of him <3. slaps the top of Ink. you can store so much love in this lad. soul or not. I think there might also be something to how he views everything as fiction- you can argue that he's fighting for the life of the creative work. the characters in it aren't like. real deaths. technically. idk. there's a lot to think about !!! I love answering these asks btw I hope that's clear. everybody feel free to come into my askbox and talk about Ink and also Judaism to me

[sol-consort]

I never got why there couldn’t be ‘male’ asari, or any non binary asari. Asari technically don’t have any sex (or at least I don’t think they do? Being able to impregnate each other and be impregnated by others) and I think within lore it’s mostly just that most Asari prefer being called female?

It would be so cool to have a male/non-binary asari, maybe get to explore that more alien side of their culture.

Would there be discrimination against non conforming asari? Or are they already recognised and respected within asari culture. Would they attempt to change their appearance to align more with masculinity, do asari even have a concept of masculinity? How would these asari deal with a galaxy that by and large assumes them to be female and perhaps pushes back against their existence?

In the asari world, all displays of masculinity fall under the pretence of femininity, because to them, femininity is personhood.

It's not the same concept of femininity you and I think of when we hear the word; it's much closer to the word "person" than it is to any real display of gender.

Asari do not have gender. Technically, they're all non binary; there is no binary.

Imagine with me if we met a new alien species who have 3 assigned gender roles for their people. Feminine, masculine, and boroblo

"Boroblo? What is that," you'd ask, and the alien would look at you as if you were an idiot before condescendingly explaining,"boroblo are people who aren't masculine or feminine. Duh?"

"So... non binary folks?"

"What? No. We DO have non binary people here, and boroblo isn't them. It's a traditional gender role that's been there since the dawn of time, silly human."

So you ask them to describe boroblo to you. The alien says sure and lists the following

Boroblo people have:

Long head fur

Small antlers

Usually are soft-spoken and never battle for dominance

Usually are best suited for manual labour or the army

Usually associated with the colour blue and dark green

Use Lor/Bir/Ler pronouns

"But," you say, "this just sounds like they took random traits from the masculine and feminine gender roles and mushed them together?"

"Uh... no. It's your species who never categorised gender roles fully and left an unfinished job. Why are your womenfolk taught to be so submissive? That's a common boroblo trait that is never suited for a lady."

Now, replace the human with an asari, and the alien with a human who's telling her about this New Gender called being a dude. With the neo-pronouns of He/Him.

Only for everything you describe to end up sounding like you're just poaching random traits from femininity and rebranding it as its own gender.

Because, from the asari perspective, femininity is interchangeable with personhood. All of what we perceive as "masculine" and "androgynous" falls under the umbrella of femininity to them.

When there is only one gender, there is no gender.

An asari can act as masculine as she wants, hell, an asari can go exclusively by he/him, and it will still fall under the umbrella of asari femininity. There is already a glaring example of this in canon: the asari's use of the word "father" under the pretence of femininity.

We do not associate femininity with personhood, and neither do we associate masculinity with personhood. So we look at the asari—who are people just acting like people—and we feel a need to categorise and label them based on vague broad details to fit our definition of genders.

You wouldn't be asking this if the asari weren't shaped like human women and looked the likes of hanar. The irony is that they do share the exact same definition of gender as the hanar! Absolutely genderless. The only difference is the hanar's use of the neo pronouns This one/It, while the asari use the neo pronouns She/Her (because all pronouns are neo pronouns! That's how language works!)

As for an ingame explanation to why their lack of gender is translated into feminine pronouns and gender, I think the ingame translator between species is at fault. The localisation human team tried to cross the language barrier by assigning all asari feminine pronouns and voices.

An asari can't be feminine, masculine or non binary; they already are. There is no default gender norm for them to break out of, like we humans battle to do. They're all the same gender, the gender of being a person.

There can never be a non-conforming asari because there is nothing to conform out of! Everything is allowed in the display of asari "femininity"

They do not associate their appearance with femininity. They associate it with personhood. Only to humans does it ever look feminine, to the asari it looks normal and mundane, the default. It's like being shown two kidneys and asked to identify which one is the girl and which one is the boy. THEY'RE KIDNEYS! THEY'RE GENDERLESS.

So are the asari bodies! Breasts are genderless in the galactic fuck-off abyss of space (and on Earth too, but people are not ready for this convo)

It's not their fault that most human women happened to have the same bodies as them. If anything, they're the ones who came first before us. We are the copycat.

No one would ever push back against the existence of asari who do not conform to human femininity, least of all the asari. The asari do not have gender roles, and what do human genders roles have gotta do with them?

But in our reality, probably because the devs needed a poster boy for the alien species with attractive qualities to peddle to their male audience at the cost of shooting the asari's art direction team in the foot.

[thesagesjournal]

[Voicelines] Proposal Day / June Bride 2025

Oz: What would my ideal proposal be? Why do you ask? Matters of love and marriage are of little importance to me. …You heard a legend about me kidnapping someone’s bride? …A great number of such stories that hold little truth to them.

Arthur: Marriage… It seems like such a simple concept, but in reality, relationships look different for everyone. Some people may choose to live together, and others — apart. However, what truly matters is finding out what feels most like home for you.

Cain: This bouquet of white roses is for you, Master Sage. Aren’t they beautiful? As soon as I saw them, I just had to get them for you. They remind me of how kind and sincere you are… Ahaha, that's kinda embarrassing to say out loud. It makes me sound like I’m proposing.

Riquet: A proposal is what you give someone you want to meet again, right? Someone you don’t want to let go. In that case, there are many people I would like to propose to. For example… you, Master Sage.

Snow: Waking up by your loved one’s side, eating the same meals, sharing conversations, and falling into bed together once again… That must be the joy of marriage. I understand the sentiment very well, and because of that, I am thankful to be able to live here with all of you.

White: It requires great conviction to make a vow for eternity. Although I believed Snow and I would be together forever, even we parted ways once. However, I also believe it's possible to walk separate paths yet stay together with enough dedication… ‘Tis what marriage must be like.

Mithra: If there’s something I want, then I’ll simply take it. It doesn’t matter if we’re talking about an object or a person. I’ll use whatever means necessary, and I won’t take no for an answer. After all, there’s only one possible outcome once I’ve made up my mind.

Owen: You want me to play the “I Love You” game? Alright, I’ll humour you for a bit. It’s all hollow nonsense to me, but that’s the kind of sickly-sweet nothing you’re craving, yes? I’ll make sure to whisper the most honeyed lies into your ear until your heart bursts.

Bradley: A Northern wizard’s heart belongs to no one but themselves. However, if I ever met someone I didn’t wanna let go of… No oath, or fate, or cage could stand in my way. I’d knock it all down to take what I want. That’s the kinda greedy bandit I am.

Faust: I’ve never had a lover, much less anyone I’d swear an eternal vow of love to. If you’re looking for proposal tips, you’re better off finding someone else. …However, if there was someone I'd want to spend my entire life with, I think a simple and honest approach is best.

Shino: When people say “the moon is beautiful” in your world, they really mean “I love you,” right? Well, I thought of an even better way to say it—“The moon is beautiful tonight, but it’s the last time you’ll ever see it ‘cause I’m gonna take it down for you.” Heh. Cool, right?

Heathcliff: Everyone has their own way of showing love. Some people prefer words, others a letter, and still more resonate with actions that speak to the heart. Which method do you prefer, Master Sage? I want to show you my feelings in the way that’ll strike you the most.

Nero: Y’know, I am a bit curious to know what kinda person could capture your heart. ‘Course, I trust ya to pick a good one when the time comes — someone who’s as kind an’ honest as you and would never hurt or betray you… Haha, I’m just guessin’, though.

Shylock: When it comes to love stories, I have plenty up my sleeve. Westerners are fond of romances after all, and I’m no exception. If you’d like, I could regale you with a couple, including a few of my own. Whether they’re true or not, though, is up to you to decide. 

Murr: Even though you say you love us all the same, something out there's gotta capture your heart! Will it be a human? A wizard? An animal? Ooh, or maybe a sparkly star or flower swaying in the breeze. Whenever you find that special something, I wanna be the first to know!

Chloe: Swearing to love someone for life just sounds incredible. I mean, it'd be a miracle to even find that person, and then staying with them forever? Phew, marriage sure isn’t for the weak of heart! If I had someone like that… Uu, I’m getting flustered just thinking about it!

Rustica: There are endless ways to make a proposal. You could play them a song on the harpsichord, cook a homemade meal, gaze deep into their eyes as you proclaim your love… Which way do you prefer, Master Sage? I’d appreciate it if you told me, and only me.

Figaro: Did you hear, Master Sage? Mitile proposed to me earlier. Apparently, he and Riquet are competing to see who can make the slickest proposal. Ahaha, they’re both pretty good, but they’ve got a long way to go before they can beat me.

Rutile: I love you. More than anyone else. …Hehe, did I make your heart race? Mitile and Riquet asked me to help them think of lines for their proposal competition, so that’s what I came up with. How would you rate it? …Ahaha, I’m glad!

Lennox: I love you with all of my heart. …I wonder if Rutile and Mitile will ever make such a vow. Honestly, I’m not even sure when it comes to myself. It still feels too early for that kind of thing.

Mitile: It’s a tradition for people in your world to go on a trip after their wedding, right? …So, um, I was just wondering… If you were to go on a trip like that in our world, where would you go? I-I’m just asking for my own future reference…!

[another-day]

time for another lovely EPISODE IN REVIEW!!! and boy, do we have a lot to discuss for this one

!!!SPOILERS FOR II EPISODE 16!!!

oh my gosh

that episode was insane, i’m still reeling from it, but let’s start from the beginning

i remember seeing a post somewhere where someone was saying 3gs would most likely have a very ‘army general’ type personality, and i think that still holds, just not to the degree i intially thought

he’s someone who focuses on motivation and praise to not only please but get people to follow through. this is not in the way of manipulation, just in order to get what needs to be done, done. expanding on his personality like this was so interesting, especially interspersing his moments of fear with his moments of joy because he hadn’t seen other people in years. it really goes to show how cobs can negatively affect other characters than mephone 4.

trophy has really grown as a character in the sense that he can now see the fundamental flaws in the persona of knife, though i do feel he’s still heavily guided in this by his own values. he has this firm belief that knife is similar if not the exact same as him; angry and violent. he breaks down all of the cracks in knife’s facade, but incorrectly so, which was interesting.

alongside this, knife is shown to still be perceived incorrectly to how wishes to be by many of the contestants. considering he’s trying to make such an effort to change and become a good person only for trophy to treat him like this is clearly dishesrtening to him. as much as he likes to build up his whole tough guy persona, in this episode and the last, we’ve seen that the words of others, especially those he considers allies, can really affect him. granted, trophy is no ally of his, but it still has an impact on him to be so shamelessly called out, even if a lot of it is assumption.

i love that they make everyone’s attempts to comfort suitcase feel so condescending in order to emphasise her confusion and disarray in terms of the situation. this feels like a circus, where suitcase is realising she’s a clown for being fooled. i love her reaction to realising nickel and balloon are friends because she has that underlying anger, yes, but more than anything else she’s confused and upset. soooo cool.

i nearly screamed but it was two in the morning when i was watching this so i did not.

but oh my gosh, the idea of “deleting” a character is horrifying. as taco put it, seeing “the life drain out of him” must’ve been horrifying for her. this, oj’s, and nickel’s deletion are only amped up by this prospect of having people around to see the life drain out of someone they were once friends with.

also why did it have to be pickle. literally what did he do.

also also, now we know what happened to toilet i guess.

forshadowing cobs being able to see wherever they go, alongside how everything of theirs in under control, even if not by cobs.

cobs is meant to parallel mephone 4 in this scene. his advertisment is very “brainwash”-y, and it emphasises what a hold he used to have on people and the control he once held through his creations. similarly so, through the reveal at the end, WHICH I’LL GET TO, we see that mephone similarly has control over all of the contestants, whether direct or otherwise. so very peculiar really.

depicting the death scenes like this was brilliant. a persuing entity, sounded by alarms that only the person who is to be killed can hear is a horrifying concept, and something so horrifying from an outsider perspective.

imagine this from paper’s perspective: you’re arguing with your best friend about the amount of tasks you’ve been given for so little credit, and you finally admit everything that’s been bothering you. instead of the reassurance you usually receive, your friend stands there in shock before asking “do you hear that?” you hear nothing. the fear on his face grows and he backs against the door, crying for something you can’t see to ‘stop’. you’re confused, but before you can question it, he’s dead, spilled. any semblance of life in him as disappeared, and everyone is terrified.

this was so masterfully executed all the times it happened; taco’s incoherency when she was found with pickle, the hotel’s reaction when oj spills, and baseball’s silence and shock as he re-enters after nickel’s death. it sets up a tone of horror, and shows just how unaware everyone truly is. soooooo very cool.

it was so cool seeing the purgatory crew again because i really missed these goofy guys. but it really gets you thinking about what role they’re going to play.

unlike bow, all of the “deleted” contestants have had their melife icons completely removed, so that begs the question; will they be turned into ghosts at purgatory mansion? bow states in the episode that it took her a while to appear in the mansion, so it gets you thinking if deletion counts as a perma-death, and those killed will be turned to ghosts.

knife’s very impersonal handling of this situation versus suitcase’s gentle assurance and questioning really brings out the difference between these two.

this scene is meant to make knife seem foolish for wanting to rush by all this, but that’s not what knife intends to look like, again bringing back this idea of misunderstanding his actions. knife doesn’t like focusing on what’s around him when he’s been given a clear objective, getting information to find cobs in this case. alongside this, he doesn’t have the same understanding of what 3gs has been through as suitcase, yet he tries, to a degree, to understand this individual. when knife isn’t given the information he needs, he looks for his own means of finding it, and moves ahead.

suitcase on the other hand is shown to want to take it slower. unlike knife, she’s more invested in the story than the lesson or outcome. this is something normally detrimental to someone in a finale, but due to their working together, knife doesn’t really get too far ahead of her. she wants to understand motivations for actions so that she can figure out how to respond, whereas knife just wants to, for lack of a better phrase, cut to the the chase. very interesting.

now, the titular reveal of the episode, “the reality of the situation”, if you will.

despite how of guard i was caught, this makes perfect sense.

though i don’t really like season three, cabby has a scene where she freaks out when questioned about her parents. i initially thought this had something to do with her memory issues, but this explanation makes much more sense. bot knew about theur parents because their parents actually exist, cabby’s did not.

no character ever talks about their past, nor their parents, nor their motivation to join the show. it all quite literally starts from the first episode, and picks up from there. that is why mephone can regenerate them. that is why when mephone dies they can’t be regenerated, because as their creator, he was the only one capable of REcreating them. its an incredible reveal, and a very well working one.

all in all, this episode was phenomenal. the chracter work and development and storyline were all so well done and i totally adore it. episode 15 was very character focused and took a step away from the plot. this episode on the other hand took the plot and bolted with it, scattering all slrts of bombshells on the way.

i love this episode because it shows unity and disharmony and everything really feels like its coming together and i’m so excited for the next episode.

till next time lovelies!!!

[cripplecharacters]

I have a character in a non-Earth fantasy setting who's is a ball jointed doll made living, but not human, so she didn't get magic'd new organs and stuff. The character can communicate intelligently but does not have human bodily functions, like breathing, eating, and more relevantly the ability to produce sound (since she doesn't have a voice box to begin with). I was considering she communicate in a type of sign language (I'm still deciding on what), but the character does not have a tongue and I'm concerned if it's essential for mouthing. Within the "rules" of her animation, she can flex her fingers, move wrists, and shape her mouth, but it's just the tongue (or the lack of it) that I'm worried could be a problem.

I know that no two sign languages are exactly the same, so I'm aware the rules can be different between languages. Since I haven't decided on the sign language she speaks, I'm open to hear y'all guys' thoughts and others'.

Hello,

So, having a tongue is not essential to mouthing a word, but lip-reading is barely a viable form of communication. Even people who are good at reading lips can only accurately figure out what's being said around seventy percent of the time. Sure, it's better than nothing if she absolutely needs to, but it's probably one of the hardest options she has for communicating.

Sign language would be great. You can choose whatever one you want, or you can give her some alien sign language, or she could use home sign, which is sign language created by those who can't speak for whatever reason but who also haven't been able to learn an official sign language for whatever reason. It would be effective, though she may encounter people who don't understand sign language.

Then there's the option of her using some sort of text-to-speech or augmentative and alternative communication. Those take a little longer as she needs to type out her thoughts, but they're also viable options to help her communicate with others, especially if your setting is some kind of science fiction.

I don't know how you would describe someone reading her lips unless it was from her perspective, but sign language and text-to-speech or augmentative and alternative communication can be written almost as dialogue. Here are a few examples.

"Excuse me?" Character's hands moved harshly and fast, her fury obvious.

Character's face lit up with an idea and she looked down at her tablet, plastic fingers clicking on the screen as the others waited for her to finish. "I have an idea, I think I know how to fix this."

She can also have someone translating for her sign language, in which case; "I'm not a decoration, you know," Other Character said, making sure to verbalize the sarcastic drawl in Character's signs. "I do occasionally have a good idea. Maybe even a great one."

I think the concept of her sounds pretty cool, by the way.

Mod Aaron

[ladyluscinia]

What Exactly Did David Jenkins Say?

Look, I'm still staunchly of the opinion that Word of God statements and creator interviews are overvalued in fandom, especially when they get pulled out mostly as gotchas without then continuing to analyze whether or not the show canon is successful at getting across that same message. Death of the Author is good, actually, and we should remember that. But they are worth looking at in the context of evaluating intent vs execution, and for future speculation - just, like, please with less of the whole mile high pedestal idolizing and backlash cycles.

But if overvalued "Word of God" is annoying, then overvalued "supposed creator statements that have gone through three rounds of telephone and any given blogger has only heard about a quarter of them, which they'll use confidently anyway" is worse. So, since I'd already looked up interviews for various reasons...

Here is a fairly comprehensive list of interviews David Jenkins has given and statements he's made during them, presented without commentary (save curating which statements get highlighted). All provided with links. I definitely missed some, so if you have any that you want to add, please do - though if you could trim off any commentary and save it for tags / your own post with a link that would be cool.

Also, again, just because he said it doesn't make it incontrovertible canon that only a blind person wouldn't understand. Some of these even arguably contradict each other. The creator's intent doesn't always translate to what the show is doing, nor do you even have to think it was a good idea.

(Listed in chronological order from oldest to newest - post contains spoilers below the cut)

Pre-S1

Gizmodo - Feb 22, 2022 - with Cheryl Eddy (io9) - Link

Why this story - Really, it was the enigma of Stede that drew him in. "I think actual pirate stuff is fine, but it's not necessarily my cup of tea. And I think Taika [Waititi] felt similarly. But hearing about this guy and reading about him and seeing that, you know, he left his family, then he met Blackbeard, they hit it off, and we don't know any of the details in between. So filling those blanks in, and having a very human story, and then being able to do it with the pirate genre, that was like, 'Oh, this would be cool.'"

Post 1x01 - 1x03

Polygon - March 5, 2022 - with Tasha Robinson - Link

David Jenkins, Taika Waititi, and Rhys Darby interview

About Stede running off to sea - "Stede thought he could outrun his baggage, and you can't outrun your baggage."

About S1 - "I don't think there was enough improv on set! We had an insane schedule, with a huge amount of plot. We were budgeted and designed as a one-hour show, but with a half-hour production schedule, which means we really had to chase these episodes to get them shot. And then there are certain emotional beats that we really needed. So trying to find places to find the fun was hard."

Mashable - Mar 5, 2022 - with Belen Edwards - Link

About the show concept - "It was Jenkins' wife who first told him about Stede's adventures; she thought it would make a good TV show."

On casting Rhys Darby - "Stede did a terrible thing to his family. If you cast it wrong, he's a very hard character to get behind," Jenkins said. "Very quickly, the only person I thought of for this was Rhys [Darby]. He has this childlike quality that's endearing."

About the story - "Seeing them discover a need for each other that neither anticipated and charting how that relationship goes is the meat of the story." + "If you're on this ship, you're running from something, and you're running to something that you can't be on land"

Mentions of matelotage - "In fact, one of Jenkins's favorite pirate facts that he learned while working on Our Flag Means Death was the term matelotage, which was a civil union between same-sex pirates. "The more you look at it," he explained, "the more you write to the fact that this is a queer-positive world.""

Discussing piracy careers - "Something else that astounded Jenkins about pirates was "just how fast it all moved — their lives were quite short," he said. "Your career [in piracy] wasn't very long.""

Post 1x09 - 1x10

Decider - Mar 24, 2022 - with Kayla Cobb - Link

David Jenkins, Taika Waititi, and Rhys Darby interview

Pitch for the show - "That was in the pitch," series creator David Jenkins told Decider. "That was the reason, to make them fall in love with each other."

About the romance - "The main thing to me was to side-step coming out," Jenkins continued. "I just want a romance. I want a Titanic romance between these two people. We don't have to do the coming out story and then the non-binary story for Jim [Vico Ortiz]."

About S2 and the show - "The show is the relationship," Jenkins said. "So, we end in a place where there is this breakup. What happens after a breakup between these two people who, one’s realized he's in love and the other one is hurt in a way that he's never been hurt before? What does that do to each of them in an action, pirate world with them trying to find each other again? So again, I really love those rom-com beats."

Collider - Mar 24, 2022 - with Carly Lane - Link

On making it a romcom - "It's the only reason to make the show. If you didn't do that, it would just be weird. I mean, you're using the rom-com beats. You're using these like they're together. And it's funny because so we're so habituated to be like bromance, bromance, bromance, and it's such a simple move to put them together."

Discusses focusing on romance - "I guess I really... I get kind of bored. How much pirate can you do? They're going to rob stuff. They're going to steal ships. There's only so many pirate stories you can do. So if you're going to do a workplace story, I mean, you're essentially having this... You'd have this same amount of relationships in Grey's Anatomy in the ER. So it's standard. It's the most standard. We're making a soap opera on a pirate ship, and to use those soap opera beats... I like it, and I like the flavor in a comedy when you have something that's played genuinely up against very ridiculous things."

Discusses history and kissing scene

Discusses importance of going home to Mary - "Yeah, that was the problem for me in the story. I knew that I wanted to have the end where he goes home, because you need to give Mary her day in court. I just wanted to know from Mary's perspective what happened and then to see that, yeah, they're friends."

Is Lucius dead? - "You got to wait."

EW.com - Mar 25, 2022 - with Devan Coggan - Link

David Jenkins, Taika Waititi, and Rhys Darby interview

Pitch for the show - "To me, [Stede and Blackbeard's relationship] is the reason to make the show," Jenkins explains. "When Taika and I were first talking about it, he was like, 'Oh yeah, that's the show.' I first started reading about Stede and how he befriended Blackbeard and we don't know why. Very quickly, it was like, 'Oh, it's a romance.'"

Polygon - Mar 25, 2022 - with Tasha Robinson - Link

Discusses 3-season intent - "I think three seasons is good. I think we could do it in three."

Discusses acts within S1 - "To me, when you see him get stabbed, and the blood runs through his fingers, it’s like 'Oh, no, the clown got stabbed! And not comedy-stabbed, he got stabbed stabbed!' That to me is cool. And then having Blackbeard find him as the end of what would be the first act of our story felt good to me."

Discusses kiss scene filming and the national moment around gay rights

What to focus on a rewatch - "I think Con O'Neill does such a great job. He's such a complex character, and it's such a tortured relationship. And that's a love story too, between him and Blackbeard. It's a very dysfunctional story, but it's fun to watch. Watch that maybe, on a rewatch, looking where their relationship ultimately goes."

TV Insider - Mar 25, 2022 - with Meaghan Darwish - Link

Discusses show pitch - "When I was pitching [the show] to people, I'd be like, 'Okay, so it's about Stede and Blackbeard, and then they hit it off and then they fall in love.' And then people are like, 'Okay, cool,' Jenkins shares. "And then they really fall in love, and become intimately involved."

Discusses historical inspiration

Discusses S2 direction - "But when [Stede] goes to find [Blackbeard], he's gone and his crew's been abandoned. And so watching them try to negotiate that, that's a good rom-com beat," he adds.

The Verge - Apr 15, 2022 - with Charles Pulliam-Moore - Link

Discusses being surprised by queerbaiting legacy - "...part of me knew that, yes, Stede and Ed's romance was going to be real. But one part of me felt like, 'We're going to do this story, and they're going to kiss, and maybe that's not even going to be that big a deal. Maybe it'll just be a blip.'"

Discusses writing romance - "I'd never written a romance before this one, but I think with Ed and Stede, the question's always 'what's the need for each other?'"

Discusses falling in love and Stede's accidental seduction - "It made sense to have that love be almost like a teenage version of falling in love — one with all these intense and conflicting feelings. They're middle-aged, but Stede's young. Ed's young. Emotionally, they're like 16, and they've both got a lot to learn."

Discusses Con O'Neill as Izzy - "He plays an exhausted quality that's really lovely because this character could just be generically evil, and the way Con plays, it is like, he's credible. I believe that he can do some damage if he wanted to. My favorite thing I've seen about the show is somebody saying that Con's playing the only human with a bunch of Muppets. It does feel like that a bit where he's like Charles Grodin in The Great Muppet Caper."

On Izzy being in love with Blackbeard - "I think Izzy's deeply in love with Blackbeard, and it's a very dysfunctional kind of love, and he's like the jilted spouse who's losing his man to fucking Stede Bonnet, and he can't believe this is happening."

Discusses masculinity and piracy as an escape from that

Discusses diversity and trauma based stories - "And the consensus in that very diverse room was that we wanted to show that isn't just wallowing in trauma. We don't have to do a coming out scene or focusing on the trauma of it — not to say that those stories aren’t valid."

Gizmodo - Jun 20, 2022 - with Linda Codega (io9) - Link

Musing on fandom response to the show - "I'm wondering if the fact that because the queerness of this show isn't gaslighting the audience, and isn't a function of wanting to do something, but not being able to produce the results because of network standards. I think we just happened to be in this lucky spot where the show is actually queer… and I do think that people are responding to that."

Comparing fanfiction to writing - "And Con O'Neill's audition was one of those things I would go back to. I would watch that and be like… Oh, right, that's the show. And in a way, you're writing fanfiction for a certain actor and character because you want them to do something, and you're like–" at this point, it must be said, Jenkins let out a maniacal little giggle. He’s just as thrilled to show off Con O'Neill's ability to seem both deeply exhausted and menacing as the rest of the fandom. "And you [as the writer] you're like… And then Izzy does this now."

EW.com - Dec 13, 2022 - with Devan Coggan - Link

Discusses The Chain sequence - "I had initially wanted that end sequence to be like the FBI raid in a mob movie, where the feds come in, and they've got boxes of stuff, and everyone's running, and someone makes a dash for it," Jenkins explains. "So, it's like a mob movie or FBI raid story, and then it's also a story of Stede's lover coming back."

Pre-S2

Collider - Oct 2, 2023 - with Carly Lane - Link

Discusses fan reaction to S1 - "I thought that they'd kiss, and people would be like, 'Oh, cool, cool!' I kind of thought people would know a little bit more [about] where we were going, but then in hindsight, no, people have been hurt and burned on so many other shows and then made to feel silly."

Discusses starting S2 dark - "One of these characters is very, very damaged and has never made himself vulnerable in this way before, and I don't think [he] would react very well to having his heart broken in this way. I don't think it would be cute, and I don't think it would be funny. I think it would be scary as hell to watch a very damaged guy that we've established in Ed, who killed his dad and thinks he's not capable of being loved, deal with rejection and see that Stede really hurt him."

Discusses adding more female characters

Discusses S2 needle drops including "This Woman's Work"

Discusses 3-season arc

Post 2x01 - 2x03

Mashable - Oct 5, 2023 - with Belen Edwards - Link

Discusses fandom response to S1

About the canon gay relationship - "To watch the explosion of enthusiasm around [the kiss] was disorienting, almost," Jenkins said. "I thought people would react to it, but I didn't think the reaction would be that big. And then it was moving, because I didn't realize that this audience felt so unserved in general, as far as storylines go."

Insider - Oct 5, 2023 - with Ayomikun Adekaiyero - Link

Tease on leaning into the Stede / Ed / Izzy love triangle - "I think Izzy, in a certain way, got the worst deal in the first season," the showrunner tells Insider. "He gets jilted and then he still is in spurned spouse territory at the beginning of the second season."

Discusses Izzy's arc - "What is that relationship about? And I think by the end of the season it kind of becomes a little unexpected of who they are to each other and what they mean to each other," he teases

Discusses addition of Zheng - "He likens Zheng's way of pirating to a successful tech startup, compared with the garage sale vibe Stede had going on the Revenge."

Discusses introducing Hornigold - "I thought Hornigold was the most obvious because he was the person who made Blackbeard what he is. And Blackbeard has a father complex, so it's natural that he's going to bring his former captain back," the show creator said. "It's a struggle with him because he and dad figures don't historically do well."

Discusses importance of the mermaid scene

Inverse - Oct 5, 2023 - with Hoai-Tran Bui - Link

Reveals he didn't commit to the romance until shooting 1x06 - "Jenkins always intended his pirate comedy to end with a romance, but he'd envisioned it as an unrequited love. "It was going to be about Stede learning what love is, and Ed making himself vulnerable and getting burned," Jenkins says of his original pitch. But Darby and Waititi's choices in the scene, which they played without diffusing the tenderness with a joke, made him wonder if they could take the show in a new direction."

Discusses mermaid Stede idea from S1 - "We talked about Stede as a mermaid very early on in the writers' room," Jenkins says. "At some point, yeah, I want to see Rhys Darby as a merman." + "They wanted us to come up with a Season 2 pitch during Season 1. And that was one of the ideas we hit on, and I can't quite remember how we got there, but it was us asking, what is a pirate world? Are there mermaids? Is there magic in this show? With pirate stuff, I don’t know that I want there to be magic, but there was a way where it was something really beautiful about a mer-person, and I like the idea that their coming together would have a mythic size to it."

Discusses historical divergence

Discusses matelotage and pirates as weird outsiders

TV Guide - Oct 5, 2023 - with Allison Piccuro - Link

About the shipping culture - "It's the meat of the show, so it's great to have people bought into the central romance. If it were a bromance that we were trying to make look like a romance, that would suck."

Discusses playlists he makes

Discusses opening dream sequence - "I just like that it started with something badass. Stede, Blackbeard, and Izzy are on an arc together. Whether they're in stories together or not, their ultimate arc is together. I think, by the end of this season, the last episode, that first scene will be gratifying. I won't say why, but their fates are tied together."

Discusses Kraken arc - "But I think the thing that's good about this show is that it can go to really sweet comedy land, but I want there to be, like, if someone loses a body part, for instance, they lose a body part. To do justice to the fact that this guy is a killer and a monster, and dealing with heartache that he doesn't know how to deal with, I think you really need to go there."

Discusses Izzy in S2 - "I mean, he's jilted. He had a partnership with Blackbeard, and he knows he can't live up to this person that Blackbeard fell in love with... Who is that guy? What are his hobbies? What does it look like when he's not totally subsumed with his boss's love affair with somebody, and heartbroken?"

On S2 reunion - "The second season is them being a little bit more mature... It's the thing where you're in your 20s or 30s and you're like, "Well, should we move in together?" They have to make up some time because neither of them have been in a functional relationship before."

About genre of pirate stories - "...is a show about multiple relationships. That's what I want to see when I see this show. I don't want to see a bunch of pirate things that I've seen in other things, I'll just go watch another thing if I want to see that. That's not really my thing. I like the genre, but it's a very hard genre to budge. I want to see relationships in a pirate world."

Discusses the A Star is Born aspect of seeking fame / retiring

Mashable - Oct 7, 2023 - with Belen Edwards - Link

About the mermaid scene - "You need something expressive for when they come back together," Jenkins said. "Their reunion moment has to feel big and mythical. This is not a world where mermaids actually exist, but their love for each other has that size that you can get [a mermaid] in there somewhere."

About Kate Bush - "I love Kate Bush, and I love that song, and I know Taika loves that song," Jenkins explained of the choice. "So I wanted to find a place for that song somewhere in the second season."

Polygon - Oct 9, 2023 - with Tasha Robinson & more - Link

Compares S2 and "Golden Age of Piracy" stuff to Westerns, lists 5 he was thinking of - "Every Western that’s good is that story," Jenkins says. "'This way of life we made is coming to an end. It can't last. It's a blip in time. We created this thing because we need it to exist. We're outlaws, and we need a culture that suits us, but it's running out of time.'"

Gizmodo - Oct 9, 2023 - with Linda Codega (io9) - Link

Short tease on leaning into the love triangle

About Stede, Edward, and Izzy - "I think the three of them are on an arc together that's pretty inseparable," Jenkins said in an interview with io9. "And to watch Izzy try to process what's happened [in season one]… to watch him kind of grow and figure out what's his own story, if he can separate himself from this kind of toxic relationship, is interesting to me and I think gives him a lot of room for growth."

Post 2x04 - 2x05

IndieWire - Oct 12, 2023 - with Sarah Shachat - Link

Discusses directing and show creation

"The limitations of the show also naturally push it back towards moments with the ensemble and plot problems that it would frankly be irresponsible to tackle if you had a giant budget and a fully working ship-of-the-line to sail and then blow to bits. "That's the fun of the show to us, I think. If you open this up and you're like, unlimited budget, that would be terrible because I think you can get seduced," Jenkins said. "[It could be like,] 'Oh man, it's all leading up to a climatic battle on the sea.' And those things are great. But that’s not this show.""

"The nice thing about that, though, is you get to be the lo-fi show that’s like, 'Hey, we’re making The Muppets.'"

PopSugar - Oct 12, 2023 - with Victoria Edel - Link

About S2 Stede - "I like the idea that he learns and grows and he doesn't just stay a bumbling captain. He might be ridiculous, but he is getting better at it."

Discusses genre challenges - "How do you have a show that's a romance show but it's also a workplace show and they're criminals?"

Discusses Edward's redemption - "But Blackbeard still has to come back and apologize and be part of the community again, and give his little press conference. It was fun for us to look at that in the context of piracy, where they all do terrible things to each other. But even by their standards, what Blackbeard did was a bit much."

Discusses Izzy in S2 - "When Izzy shoots Blackbeard and they all mutiny on him, that's Izzy breaking up with Blackbeard. And they're both having their own journey in the wake of it, and Izzy's having his own redemption arc. He's trying to figure out, "Who am I if I'm not Blackbeard's first mate? Who am I outside of this relationship?"" + "If Stede's Spongebob, he's Squidward. I don't know what that makes Blackbeard. But there's a real pathos to Squidward."

Discusses trauma-based narratives - "As a diverse room in terms of sexuality, socio-economic background, and race, we thought, "Wouldn't it be nice to have a non-trauma-based story for these characters who don't get that historically?""

Variety - Oct 13, 2023 - with Hunter Ingram - Link

Discusses three act structure and making Stede work for a relationship - "The way I like to look at a season is in threes. The end of the first act is when they find each other, and this is the beginning of the second act. They've found each other, but they are pissed. Stede thought it was going to be [Kate Bush's] “This Woman's Work,” but, in reality, it is this headbutt –– literally."

Discusses the central romance - "It was always part of the pitch... that is the reason to make the show. The pirate genre is fun, but I wasn’t dying to make a pirate show. Taika wasn’t dying to make a pirate show. But the thing that was interesting to me was that Stede finds love, and he finds it with Blackbeard."

Discusses 2x04 plot - "This episode is based on a very, very thumbnail sketch of "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?." Anne and Mary are Martha and George, and they are Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton."

Discusses adding historical pirates

Discusses Buttons exit - "I just love the idea of him turning into a bird: I love the idea of Buttons somehow being the one character that is able to figure that out."

Discusses Izzy and the crew's trauma plot - "We liked the idea that there is something about trauma and getting past that trauma, even on a pirate ship. They have been through two very different ways of living and they have to get used to each other again. But it's also a family that was separated, and becoming one family again is painful."

Discusses bringing characters back - "We could bring Calico Jack back, who, if you remember, was hit by a cannonball last season. Anyone who is that fun to play with and wants to keep playing, you always find a way to bring them back."

Polygon - Oct 14, 2023 - with Tasha Robinson - Link

Discusses 3-season arc and how keeping them apart with some plot device was never in the cards - "at the end of the first season, they're 14-year-olds, emotionally. In this season, it's more like they’re in their late 20s."

Discussing New Zealand production and ensemble cast writing - "It's pretty organic, because as we're going through and tracking everybody's journey for the season, we're watching the thing that holds us together — what stage of Stede and Blackbeard's relationship are we in? Because the overarching arc is, are these guys going to learn how to settle into a relationship?"

"The second season is more overtly about romance, and more a relationship story."

Energizing aspect of fan reaction

S3 is about "love is work"

Gizmodo - Oct 16, 2023 - with Linda Codega (io9) - Link

About the story - "I want to see them become a functional couple or fail to become a functional couple," Jenkins said. "Those are the most interesting parts of the show."

Discusses fandom engagement - "...ultimately the writers are also "the fans in the room." He goes on to say that, "We're fans of the world. We're writing fanfic about our own characters, our own worlds… It's paid fanfic, but it's fanfic." He gives another example: "If you're writing a season of Succession, you're writing fanfic Succession. You're just getting paid to do it. We, as writers–" it's clear that he's not just talking about the writers in the writers room, "become fans of the world and we all have things we want to see these characters do. What we do is not that different."

Discusses the A Star is Born aspect of seeking fame / retiring

Discusses Zheng Yi Sao

Villains of the series - There are a lot of new villains this season, but, Jenkins says, ultimately, "the antagonist on this show is normalcy… These pirates have a way of life that they're not finding in normal life. They've found a way to live and support each other and be there for each other. And that's always threatened by these larger, tyrannical forces that want to shut them down."

Post 2x06 - 2x07

Mashable - Oct 19, 2023 - with Belen Edwards - Link

Discussing drag performance in 2x06

"It is nice to see with Izzy's arc, where he finally breaks through whatever he's been doing to himself. He lets himself have that moment, which I just love. It resonates for Izzy, and I think it resonates for Con. Just personally, it made me feel good to see how it turned out."

Consequence - Oct 19, 2023 - with Liz Shannon Miller - Link

Discusses intent for romance - "...telling a love story in a serialized medium like television has its perils, largely because it's tough to know how much you can draw out any unresolved tension. "I think we take it episode by episode and we try to not piss people off in taking too long and doing double beats and triple beats," Jenkins says. "You can only do Will They or Won’t They for so long. Then you have to deepen it.""

Discusses pirate setting - "The emphasis on relationships also fits into the show's high-seas setting, which Jenkins finds similar to post-apocalyptic narratives. "It is a little bit like you're doing Mad Max, except there's relationships," he says. "Stuff's shitty, so you gotta try to find some joy. Of course, people are going to have a need for each other in these extreme circumstances, and I like the idea of these characters finding some level of a healthy relationship in these extreme circumstances.""

Discusses Jim x Archie

Discusses 3-season arc

Polygon - Oct 21, 2023 - with Tasha Robinson - Link

Discussing gender and power dynamics in Jackie x Swede / Zheng x Oluwande / Blackbeard x Stede + A Star is Born aspect

Jim not being jealous of Oluwande - "I think that relationship was always seen in the room as a friend relationship that got romantic."

About adding a villain - "I think a lot of the internal forces in Our Flag are the villains." + "I think this is a story about the age of piracy coming to an end. This way of life is coming to an end. And every Western that's good is that story: This way of life we made is coming to an end, and it can't last. […] I think every story about outlaws is about trying to preserve a way of life against normative forces that are kind of fascistic."

Historical accuracy - "The balance of the show is 90% ignoring history, and then 10%, bring it in, whenever we're like, Ah, gotta move the story forward! Remember, the English are out there, and they're really bad!"

Post 2x08

AV Club - Oct 26, 2023 - with Saloni Gajjar - Link

Killing Izzy was always the plan - "We wanted to show the depth of that character. Izzy is one of my favorites. He's like middle management who is in a sort of love triangle [in season one]."

Discusses how they really wanted the happy ending for S2 - "I think with season one's end, it was a gamble to leave it the way it was. Everybody stomached through it. Now if it turned out they didn't want us to make more, I just didn't want to have another story where the same-sex love story ends in tragedy, unrequited love, or if one or both of them are being punished."

Discusses S2 progressing the 3-season romance - "They’re a couple who is like in their late twenties right now as opposed to being teens at the end of season one." + "It was an interesting tension of, which one gives up their dream? A lot of times in relationships questions can come up, like who is going to give up on their dream to take care of the kids? Obviously, no one wants to, but someone ends up giving up more than they want to at some point. What's wonderful about a mature romance, and what I'd want to see more of in season three, is Ed and Stede making these tough decisions." + progressing past the getting together point

Discusses parallels, Republic of Pirates, and Zheng Yi Sao

Short bit about fan response

Collider - Oct 26, 2023 - with Carly Lane - Link

Discusses Ed leaving fishing - "I like that he had a little prima donna moment where he thought he could go and be a simple man, and then it's revealed that he really isn't a simple man; he's a complicated, fussy, moody guy. No, he's not gonna be able to catch fish for a living. For him to be told that, "At your heart, you're a pirate. You have to go back and do it," he doesn't want that to be true, but it was true."

Discusses Izzy's speech to Ricky - "I wanted to give Izzy a proper eulogy for himself. He gives a eulogy for himself, but it felt true writing it."

Discusses Izzy's death scene - "In a way, it's very much for Ed, that speech. The "we were Blackbeard" is claiming that he is also Blackbeard, that Blackbeard is not just Ed’s creation, and I like that for him, too, because he's worked so hard for that — and then just to say, "You can give it up." There can never be a Blackbeard again as far as Izzy's concerned because he's dying, and they did that together."

Discusses Republic of Pirates / music parallels from premier to finale

Discusses finale wedding - "We knew we wanted a matelotage in the season, which is the real term they had for marrying crew members. And yeah, they've always been in relief to Stede and Ed, and they're a little bit ahead of Stede and Ed in how much they can talk about things. So to have a bunch of family things in the season, like a funeral and a wedding, and have the parents kind of watch the kids sail away, felt right, and all of those things seem to work well together and build on each other."

Discusses retirement ending - "That will-they-or-won't-they is interesting to a point, but the real meat of it is always like, "Can they make the relationship, and can they do better than Anne and Mary?""

"Frenchie's in charge of the Revenge" + teases Stede struggling to give it up

EW.com - Oct 26, 2023 - with Devan Coggan - Link

Discusses Izzy's death and telling Con - "It feels like the logical end of Izzy's arc. It's heartbreaking to me because he's my favorite." + "I told him in the middle of shooting because I didn't want him to find out at the table read, obviously. I also didn't want it to leak. He was lovely about it."

Discusses Izzy's final arc - "You know, I didn't expect him to become kind of a father figure to Ed. I think we hit on that while we were breaking the [final] episode. He's in such a weird position: He's like a jilted lover, and then he's a middle manager who has to work for a terrible boss. He gets thrown away, and then he comes back. He really develops, and he becomes a part of this family. I think the biggest surprise was the extent that he was a mentor to Ed. They were both Blackbeard. They both made Blackbeard happen."

Discusses the happy ending intent - "With this season starting so dark, I kind of wanted to reward them for the work that they've done and the character growth that they've had. I wanted to leave them in a place where they're really going to try and make this work. I don't think it's going to be easy for them, necessarily. They're both still immature."

Discusses the wedding - "We knew we wanted a matelotage in the second season, and pretty quickly we landed on Lucius and Black Pete. It seems like they were ready for that. We made up a ceremony and everything, where they call each other mateys, and it was just fun to make our own version of a pirate wedding ceremony."

Discusses potential S3 and Frenchie's Revenge - "But it felt like a good place to end the second season. It felt like a contrast to the first season. If it turns out we don't make any more, I'm comfortable with that being a resting place."

Variety - Oct 26, 2023 - with Hunter Ingram - Link

S3 endpoint - "I love things in threes," he says. "That first act, second act, third act structure is so satisfying when it is done well, and you don't overstay your welcome. I think this world of the show is a big world, and if the third season is successful, we could go on in a different way. But I think for the story of Stede and Ed, that is a three-season story."

Discusses the draw of a "Golden Age" and it's ending

Talks about father figure Izzy and wanting a real sense of loss - "There is a nice parallel to have Ed treat him so badly at the beginning of the season and then come all the way around to where Izzy is this sort of father figure he doesn’t want to lose — because Ed usually kills his father figures."

Gizmodo - Oct 26, 2023 - with Linda Codega (io9) - Link

Teasing future Izzy - "Jenkins looked slightly sad himself, saying that "Ghosts exist in this world." I told him not to make promises he couldn't keep."

"Jenkins said that he doesn't see Izzy as a pure antagonist in season one because on some level… Izzy was right in his hesitations about Stede."

Discussing Con O'Neill & Rhys Darby acting

Jenkins confirms the season was always 8 episodes due to budget cuts

About S2 finale vs S3 - "The first season ends on such a downer, so it made sense to end the second season in a kinder spot." + "I think there's plenty of story left for season three, but I think that it was important to end this as if it was the end of the show, and on upbeat note and avoid the kind of "kill your gays" trope. I don't want to see Stede and Ed punished for giving it a go. I want to see them really say, 'yeah, we’re going to we're going to try to have a relationship'."

Teases S3 revenge against Ricky and going to the Americas

Vanity Fair - Oct 26, 2023 - with Sarah Catherall - Link

About the ending - "It's bittersweet. There's death and there's the rebirth of Stede and Blackbeard's relationship; there's a funeral, there's a wedding, and the idea that this family is going to keep fighting even as they lose members. And then it's about belonging to something." + "A lot of times, with this narrative of characters, same-sex relationships end on a dour, downbeat note, where one of them dies and it's unrequited or it's unrealized; something horrible happens and they're punished in a way. So it was important to leave it open and a lot more show to go, but also leave it in a place where it's happy."

Discusses Izzy as a mentor / father figure - "We felt like Izzy's story had reached its conclusion, where we put him through enough. And then there was the realization that he is kind of a mentor to Blackbeard and that he is kind of a father figure to Blackbeard." + "And it's also a pirate show, so he's got to die."

Discusses filming challenges - "It's a big show; it's basically a one-hour show that we're doing on a half-hour budget."

Discusses adding Zheng Yi Sao

Is the show a queer romance? - "For this show, it's important to me just to write a really bold-bodied romantic show that happens to be between two characters of the same sex. I think that the story beats don't matter, because if you've been in love and you've been hurt and you met someone you love—hopefully we all know what those feelings are."

Blackbeard's arc in S2 - "...the second season is about Blackbeard's midlife crisis. And then when they both have their midlife crises, they can open a B&B together." + "I don't think Stede and Blackbeard are ready to be married. They're emotionally saying: 'Let's give this a go.'"

Discusses historical piracy as "counterculture" that's been straightwashed and whitewashed

Did he feel responsibility to the fan community? - "As opposed to responsibility, it feels more like relief—that people feel seen and they feel good about it and they liked what we did. And so it feels like, Okay, somebody's out there and wants the show. The makeup of the writers room looks a lot like the makeup of the fan base. So as long as we're true to our stories in the writers room, I think we just feel excited that there's somebody waiting on the other end to enjoy it."

Paste Magazine - Oct 26, 2023 - with Tara Bennett - Link

Discusses whether fandom expectations felt weighty - "I think particularly for this season, that "bury your gays" thing… I didn't want to end on a downbeat for Ed and Stede. We did that in the first season. I like that there's a lot of different flavors. It's even a little melancholy because the Republic of Pirates got blown up. But there's still more good things."

Discusses production and plotting - "I wanted to start at the Republic of Pirates this season and end at the Republic of Pirates. And I knew I wanted the Republic of Pirates to be destroyed, ultimately. Within that, we are making a one-hour show on a half hour budget, on a half hour schedule."

Discusses planning the ending - "In terms of ending this season, it all felt right just in talking through it when we were in the room. It felt pretty intuitive. When you get to the third act of the story, things kind of settle in. There's gonna be a funeral. We always knew we wanted a wedding at the end of the second season. And I knew that I wanted Stede and Ed to start an inn together. So once you have those beats, it's kind of locked in."

Discusses Izzy's arc - "It's kind of a strange arc in that I knew we were going to put him through all these things, and I knew he would ultimately die. But I think him becoming a father figure to Ed in the last episode didn't really dawn on us until we were breaking the last episode. Asking what would this man say to Ed at the end because they've been together through everything? He went from a troubled and downtrodden employee to a jilted lover to a discarded employee, to someone that is just trying to find his footing again—no pun intended—to actually becoming this guy's parental figure on some level. And he's one person who kind of raised Ed right, because Blackbeard usually kills his parental figures. So, it felt right and it felt like that's how the mentor dies. The mentor in a story usually dies in the second act and then our hero has to go on and try to do it without them. It felt like the right journey for Izzy and a gratifying one for Con."

On leaving open for S3 - "I don't think it was a very hard thing to do. I think it was more that I felt a responsibility to leave Ed and Stede in a good place, at least for now. It's not gonna go well. They're not going to run a business well. Ed's too much of a talker. Stede can't focus. It's gonna be challenging."

Vulture - Oct 28, 2023 - with Sophie Brookover - Link

Discussing Izzy as a "father figure" and his S2 send-off being a priority

Meaning of piracy - "...what our pirates stand for is a life of belonging to something larger than they are in the face of a crushing, slightly fascist normalcy."

Re: Con O'Neill & Izzy's death - "I had to tell him about halfway through the season"

Third season about the work of a relationship between still damaged main characters

Discusses middles as about change and transitions, and wanting characters to change instead of reset, have them experience permanent consequences

About the final scene - "...Ed and Stede as the parents kind of watching the kids take the ship. Frenchie's the captain now..."

Objective of the crew - "...have had terrible things happen to them at the hands of colonial forces, so they want some payback. Party, plunder, and payback — the three P's."

Metro Weekly - Nov 1, 2023 - with Randy Shulman - Link

Discusses historical premise of S1 and easing into the romance

Discusses S2 genre - "In the second season, it was great because we know it's a romance and we can lead with that. It's a workplace show essentially. I wanted it to be more in the vein of early episodes of Grey's Anatomy or something where there are all these relationships on those shows. That's what you’re following — relationships and friendships that are taking place in a hospital, procedural. That's Grey's Anatomy. This is less procedural for the pirate stuff — and you need the pirate stuff."

Discusses not being into pirates - "But I'm like you. I'm not a big pirate person. In general, it's a big creaky genre that's hard to budge" + "Pirates of the Caribbean, those movies are great. That's not necessarily what I hunger to see, but in that genre, it's great. You're not going to beat that, especially on something that's lower budget. We've seen a lot of this stuff, so it's fun to take it then and don't do any of that stuff."

Discusses adapting historical piracy - "You don't want to see them punch down. You don't want to see them do terrible things to people who don't deserve it, which is not what they really did. So, in the show's world, I think piracy is like a stand-in for something. I think it's a stand-in for being an iconoclast and an outsider and queer in some ways and just different." + "Yeah, I mean, the British are there to be Stormtroopers, or Nazis in an Indiana Jones movie. I mean, they're in there to die essentially."

Discusses diversity staffing

Discusses performative masculinity

Discusses Izzy's death, happy endings, and openness to S3